High levels of domestic abuse

Incidents of domestic abuse in the local area were highest in Northern Ireland, apart from Belfast.

A total of 3,145 incidents were recorded in the Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon Council area in the twelve months to September 30.

The figures were released as the PSNI launched its Domestic Abuse Christmas Campaign to encourage anyone who is a victim of abuse to report it.

The campaign, entitled ‘Domestic abuse is wrong, pick up the phone and make it stop’ is designed to encourage the reporting of incidents and make domestic abuse victims aware that they can take steps to stop it. It will run throughout December online.

Detective Chief Superintendent George Clarke, Head of the PSNI’s Public Protection Branch, said: “The sad reality is that at this time of year, the number of domestic incidents increase. On Christmas Day alone last year, there were 79 recorded incidents and on Boxing Day, there were 111. That is a total of 190 incidents over that two day period. In the period from 24 December to 28 December last year, there were a total of 515 recorded domestic incidents.

“These statistics are shocking, especially when you consider the fact that behind every statistic is a victim who has had to endure abuse and that those victims, both male and female, may have suffered abuse many times before calling the police or contacting other agencies for assistance.

“It is also important to remember that all year round, police officers respond to an incident of domestic abuse every 19 minutes. Between October 2014 and September 2015, there were 13,599 domestic abuse crimes reported to police, the highest level recorded since 2004/05. Over the same period, last year, there were 13,313 domestic abuse crimes reported to police.

“Between October 2014 and September 2015, there were 28,189 incidents of domestic abuse reported. Over the same period, last year, there were 27,974 incidents. We also know a large number of incidents aren’t reported to police. We know that domestic abuse is a frightening crime which can affect anyone often leaving them feeling isolated.”